BOISE, Idaho – The Idaho Steelheads (24-12-3) battled in multiple facets against the Allen Americans (13-27-3) and came away with a 3-2 overtime win on Friday night from CenturyLink Arena.
The Americans got out to an early lead, 1-0, at 4:58 of the first period thanks to forward Curt Gogol in front of the net. The game spiraled with two fights in the opening frame and extended into the second period with more behind the play, but the Steelheads found their scoring answer in that middle period.
At 0:55 of the second period, Steelheads defenseman Brady Norrish received a give-and-go from forward Mitch Moroz and placed a shot from the right circle by the netminder to tie the game, 1-1. Then, at 6:33, a shot by Steelheads defenseman Clint Lewis was deflected by forward Elgin Pearce in front of the net into an open goal, giving the home side a 2-1 lead.
Tensions simmered in the third period, but the Americans leveled the score at 5:50 with a goal from defenseman Alex Breton, tying the game at 2-2 and sending play into overtime. At 3:17 of overtime, Steelheads forward Steve McParland stripped a defenseman of the puck and after a first shot turned away flipped the rebound over the sprawled out netminder, securing the 3-2 overtime win.
Steelheads netminder Tomas Sholl (15-5-0) saved 27 of 29 shots in the win, while Americans goaltender C.J. Motte (11-11-3) halted 42 of 45 shots in the overtime loss. The Steelheads and Americans finish their weekend series on Saturday, Jan. 19 at 7:10 p.m. from CenturyLink Arena. Tickets are available by calling 208-383-0080 or going to idahosteelheads.com. Coverage begins at 6:50 p.m. on 1350AM KTIK as well as 7:00 p.m. on CableOne Ch. 72 and ECHL TV.
Single-game tickets and season ticket packages are on sale, with full-season packages starting as low as $300 per seat. Contact the Idaho Steelheads at 208-383-0080 for more information or log on to idahosteelheads.com.
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